1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as a copier, an MFP, a printer, or a fax machine that has an input part including a display part, a touch panel, etc.
2. Description of Related Art
An image forming apparatus such as a copier, an MFP, or the like may be provided with, for example, a liquid crystal display part and a touch panel so that functions (for example, zooming out/in, integrated printing, double-sided printing, image data transmission, etc.) to be set can easily be selected and set. However, with a trend towards a larger number of functions to be loaded in the image forming apparatus, the image forming apparatus has a wide variety of loaded functions, which makes it difficult in some cases to recognize not only methods of setting the functions but also detailed contents of the functions (what functions can be implemented). Thus, known is, for example, an electronic device that displays at the display part a screen (help screen) indicating, for example, the setting method.
Specifically, the electronic device includes: a display part that displays, for example, display elements corresponding to the respective functions; a storage part that stores help guide information; an operation part that receives predetermined operations by the user; and a control part that in response to the predetermined first operation, reads the help guide information from the storage part and in response to the predetermined second operation while the help information is displayed, selects and sets the function corresponding to the help guide information. With this configuration, the electronic device can, for the function desired by the user, select and set the corresponding function directly from a state in which the help guide information is displayed.
Typically, the image forming apparatus may be adapted to preselect a plurality of functions (setting items) often combined together for use and then preregister them as a program. Then in some cases, the registered program (called “work flow” in some cases) can be called to thereby make settings for the preselected plurality of setting items in series in a collective manner.
There are a case where the user is not familiar with the settings themselves since the image forming apparatus has been just introduced and a case where the user may not fully know detailed contents of the setting items included in the work flow since the user uses the work flow created by a different person. Thus, a possible solution is that even in the settings made by use of the work flow, a help screen is displayed by, for example, pressing a help key. Consequently, the user can make settings for the series of setting items included in the work flow while referring to the help screen.
However, especially for the setting item for which the help screen has been referenced, it is possible that a setting different from what the user assumed may be made. In other words, there arises a problem of high possibility of a setting error. Then job execution with the setting left different from what the user assumed brings about a problem that the job may result in vain.
Here, the electronic device can directly set the function from the state in which a help is displayed, and thus does provide great convenience. However, upon the job execution, the electronic device does not make confirmation with the user for the setting of the function for which the help screen has been referenced. Thus, the job may be executed with the setting error present, so that the electronic device cannot solve the problem described above.